So, you’ve found a property which is near town, near some local facilities, has some element of off-road parking and looks fairly attractive from the outside. So, you can now buy it? Right? Wrong…

What you need to do now is a thorough evaluation of the inside and the more you do, the quicker it will get for you.

Its not as easy as finding the property in the right area, you now need to find the right property. And this can sometimes be very tricky – in fact, I would go so far as to say that I reject 4 out of 5 properties I look at because they do not meet my criteria.

I think that continual learning is really important and by reading books rather than watching television (although sadly I subscribe to that evil beast as well most night after 9.30pm), you can keep your mind occupied and the little grey matter might last a wee bit longer.

So, I’ve decided to share my books with you (if you don’t mind) so that if you’re feeling at a loose end one day and want a good read, something inspiring, something challenging, then you can cast an eye over my selection of oddities, choose one and know that at least you’ll be reading something that you may get some value out of (ie do most celebrities have much of value to tell us in their biographies?).

I will try and do a book review that always gives you pointers on content, ideas, writing style and value for money. That together with my comments should give you a good idea of whether its worth pursuing or not.

My top tip of the day for book reading is this:-

JOIN YOUR LOCAL LIBRARY – its possibly one of the best investments you will ever ever make.

Why?

its free (and not a lot in life is anymore)

its quiet so you can focus, relax (alas not with a cappucino but hey…) and concentrate

they have tons of great books both old and new to choose from

you can normally get 10 out at a time (and I always have the full 10 – why wouldn’t you?)

you can order books in (practically any book) for about 50 pence

you can generally take and return books to any library in the county

you normally have at least 30 libraries of differing sizes in your locality to choose from

even the smallest library will probably have 50 books that will be of interest to you – thats a good years reading right?

So, get yourself down to your local library today and join up – you won’t regret it.

Experiences are an interesting concept and I’ve partaken in three recently that all differed enormously.

I’m sitting sipping a grande Cinnamon Dolce Latte (indulgent I know but its my treat for the day) at the home of phenomenal experiences Starbucks.

Everything about the Starbucks ethos, promise, atmosphere, staff and products wants me to come back again and again.If I need a coffee when I’m in a new town, Starbucks will always be my first choice because they have mastered the experience of drinking a cup of coffee whilst relaxing on a comfortable sofa or working on your laptop at a table.I’m not actually sipping coffee; I’m taking part in a lifestyle experience which appeals to where I am right now in my life and no matter where I go its always the same.

Contrast this to my experience of a long-established British record superstore; HMV and you couldn’t get two experiences more far apart.

Its a classic line and one I refer to a lot – and I love the movie too (for more information, you’ll just have to sign up to my exclusive ££99 value ecourse).

So what does it all mean?

Well, for most people in business cash is king. Without cash, you can’t pay your bills, you can’t invest in your business, you can’t save money for emergencies, you can’t pay yourself!

Yet, many property investors struggle along from month to month losing money hand over fist whilst trying to get the next cashback deal which even then just gives them another debt to worry about – with no real regular cashflow to show for it.

How do you get out of the vicious circle once you’re in it? Well, its hard but you need to start by focusing on revenue-earning opportunities and ways to improve your cashflow.

In 2005, significant changes were made to the Housing Act which meant that Houses in Multiple Occupancy came under additional legislation and scrutiny.

This was to protect the people staying in HMO’s whilst ensuring that standards were nationalized and brought up to a decent and safe standard.

Generally speaking, all properties where there are more than 2 people sharing who are unrelated is classified as a HMO. However, what this means in practice is that HMO’s need to meet national standards of rental accommodation.

Typical yields in the property market tend to be 3%-5% in the current climate for a single let. This means that if you are paying interest on a loan of 5% plus, then you’ll be losing money if you’re heavily geared (i.e. your loan to the value of your property is more than 80%).

With HMOs, yields are 8%-12% for a similar property based on the number of rooms.

This means a good positive monthly cashflow can be enjoyed and you can truly run a business that brings in cash every month.Read More

With general rises in interest rates and rents still static in many parts of the country, the majority of landlords letting to individuals (single lets) are either just breaking even or in the majority of cases subsidising the property.

By investing in HMO’s, you are investing into a business system that can provide you and your families with a strategy that mitigates your risk, provides you with massive passive cashflow and allows you to add value to your properties.

Whether you are a first-time landlord or a seasoned player with many properties, I would always encourage everybody to have a HMO strategy within their business model.Read More